Firstly I have to say it saddens me that on typing in the band and album name into Google to do some research on the theme of the album, the first thing I see is links to download it. Cthonic have worked incredibly hard and it is amazing that they have the profile that they do today. They fought to get their music heard and were in fact fighting from the get go even getting their band formed and playing the extreme music they do, something that was pretty much unheard of in their native home of Taiwan at the time. As far as we are concerned in the UK, since they first managed to really get anything released over here back in 2005 with ‘Seediq Bale,’ their fourth full length album, they have not stopped ingratiating themselves upon us. This has been in the form of shows, festivals, cultural trips and a huge amount of press. From what I can gather they have been willing to talk to anyone, no matter how big or small they are and are also an incredibly fan friendly band.
Moan over. Let’s get to that theme, as with Chthonic there is more than just their music and every album gives those of us willing to tuck in a bit of a history lesson. Actually I am going to cheat as I cannot sum things up any better and in anymore of a straightforward fashion than band bassist Doris Yeh who has commented "The Takasago Army was a Taiwanese troop of Japanese force/Axis powers that fought in the Pacific War/World War II between 1940 and 1944. The Takasago soldiers were descendants of a brave and powerful people from the mountains of Taiwan, people with a strong warrior tradition. They impressed their rivals with their cunning, tenacity and skill on the battlefield, and they became the most revered and most feared combat unit in the Japanese Imperial Army.
"
Sorrowful intro ‘The Island’ conveys futility and sets up atmosphere and the Eastern instrumentation etches the sombre symphonic piece giving the feel that two cultures are very much working in harmony. After this we are picked up with the battering assault of ‘Legacy Of The Seediq.’ Drums are muscular and incredibly powerful but instead of traditional bass your attention is really drawn toward the twang of the erhu, again making you well aware that although style is familiar this is also something a little on the different side. Freddy Lim compliments the music with both low gruff barks and harsher high tones, giving the likes of the oft compared Mr Filth a run for his money. ‘Takao’ has been chosen as single and the catchy erhu plucking partly explain this as the melody is very rich here. Again bridging cultures the song is enforced by the accompanying vocal clamour of Ensiferum bassist Sami Hinkka. Add to this a full Taiwanese chorus and you have a pretty fully fleshed number and one that does not hold back on the extremity in any respect.
Songs do not outstay their welcome and the whole album is done in under the ¾ of an hour mark but this does not make anything less epic. There is a horn section austerely bolstering ‘Oceanquake’ which trembles under its might. Another stand out number is ‘Broken Jade’ complete with sample of the Emperor’s surrender speech at the end of WWII. The video for this one is also well worth a look. I really love the wounded vocal roars on ‘MAHAKALA’ the song is a fearsome beast and the drumming and strange sounds from the traditional instruments make it sound quite unique and otherworldly. Finally we end up with the taught twang of ‘Quells The Souls In Sing Ling Temple’ and we get some backing blackened female vocals I guess courtesy of Doris and some flamboyant guitar leads as we dash towards the finish line.
This is an album that enriches on each listen and there is plenty going on in it to keep you occupied. Chthonic have done another great job here both musically and historically and as they continue to rise in popularity they should be applauded rather than ripped off! All hail the Chthonic army
http://www.myspace.com/chthonictw
http://www.myspace.com/chthonictw
Pete Woods
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